Are you struggling to land your dream job despite submitting countless portfolios? You’re not alone!

According to recent statistics, a job opening receives an average of 250 resumes or portfolios, but only 3% of applicants are invited for an interview. But how can you ensure that your portfolio gets noticed by hiring managers?

Many of the freelancers even after submitting their resume, they don’t have a portfolio to offer which might affect their probability of getting a job.

In this article, we’ll explore the latest portfolio statistics and trends that’ll shape your job hunt and help you stand out from the crowd.

What Is A Portfolio And How Does It Work?

According to Collins dictionary, a portfolio can be defined as a set of pictures by someone, or photographs of examples of their work, which they use when entering competitions or applying for work.

A good portfolio should be one that tells a good story. A story that explains in detail what you’re trying to show the public.

Just as you would like your resume and cover letter to flow in a way that entices the reviewer or interviewer to continue reading your resume and cover letter, your portfolio should also tell a story.

Prospective employers and potential clients want to see your thought process and the ideas behind your best designs.

You should always choose quality over quantity when creating a portfolio.  It is better to have fewer high-quality pieces than many less quality ones.

Showcase your best work to demonstrate your skills and give potential employers or clients a clear understanding of your experience and abilities.

When creating a portfolio, there are several different categories that you should consider;

• Personal Information.
• Values.
• Personal Goals and History.
• Accomplishments and Job History.
• Skills and Attributes.
• Education and Training.
• Testimonials and Recommendations.

Why Do You Need A Portfolio?

The following reasons are why you need a good portfolio;

Sets You Apart From Competition

A professional portfolio is a very good way to present your work to your employers and display the skills that qualify you for a particular position.

Although not every employer and position requires a portfolio, a strong demonstration of your work can help distinguish you from other candidates depending on your industry, thereby setting you apart from competition.

Helps Organize Your Professional Experience

A career portfolio helps to illustrate your professional accomplishments, talents, abilities, activities, and attitudes to prospective employers.

A portfolio also serves as a marketing tool, offering employers a preview of your performance as a potential employee

Establishes Your Credibility

A good portfolio can showcase your previous achievement and let your employers see that you’re up to the task.

Showcases Your Unique Brand And Skills

Your portfolio should not just show your previous works and achievements.  it should also show your unique skill, that particular skill that others don’t have, the skill that will make you stand out.

Employers are looking for unique abilities and skills. That is what your portfolio should contain.

Key Elements Of A Portfolio

Below are the important element of a portfolio. They include:

Profound Work Summary 

A career or work summary is a short paragraph that describes your relevant work experience and professional accomplishments.

The aim of a career or work summary is to entice an employer to continue reading the remaining elements in the portfolio.

When included at the beginning of your portfolio, employers can gain a clearer understanding of what you can offer them and their company and give a greater chance to get employed.

Unique Skills 

This section gives you the opportunity to point out specific abilities that make you qualified.

You need to look up for skills,  write the skills you have and then narrow down the list to ones that specifically relate to the position for which you’re applying. You can also include a combination of hard skills and also soft skills.

Hard skills are the technical knowledge you’ve learned from education or life experience. Examples of hard skills include:

• Fluency in a foreign language.
• Bookkeeping.
• Search engine optimization.

Soft skills are the skills that form the way you work by yourself and also with others.  Examples of soft skills include:

• Teamwork.
• Detail-oriented.
• Interpersonal communication.

Professional Achievements 

This section should enlist your professional achievements. Depending on your level of experience, you may want to list your accomplishments in different categories, such as educational achievements, work-related achievements and other achievements.

The following are some of the achievement you can enlist in your portfolio:

• Career advancements.
• Ideas you introduced to your team.
• Procedures you developed and implemented.

Credible Work Samples 

Providing work samples is a great opportunity to showcase some of your best work. Include samples that show a broad range of your talents.

Depending on the industry you work in, work samples may include presentations, brochures, reports, articles or projects.

Certifications & Recommendations

Including items such as certification shows proof of your competence in your area of expertise. When submitting an electronic portfolio, you need to attach PDFs to this section.

If you’re giving them a physical portfolio, include copies of all relevant materials. Credible recommendations may come from your previous employers, managers, coworkers or mentors.

6 Best Practices For Creating A Perfect Portfolio 

The following are 6 best practices for creating a perfect portfolio;

Select The Right Platform

Selecting the right platform is the first thing to consider when creating a good portfolio.

You need to think about the features and functionality you need, such as hosting, security, analytics, e-commerce, etc.

Make Consistent Portfolio Design

When creating a good portfolio, making a consistent design is important. Whatever layout, theme or design you start with should be why you’ll end it with.

A perfect portfolio directly reflects your professionalism and attention to detail, so ensure you use a consistent design theme throughout your portfolio, including fonts, colors, and imagery.

Use Quality Contents & Images

One thing to bear in mind when creating a good portfolio is that the quality of the work you share is more important than the quantity.

It is also very important that you curate your work samples with this in mind.

Seek Professional Feedback

Get your portfolio reviewed by other professionals. Make sure their opinions are being weighed.

A third person’s perspective may be crucial to identifying areas for improvement in order to get a good portfolio.

Regularly Update Portfolio

There are high chances that you have old projects in your portfolio that you’ve outgrown already.

As you improve your skills, you don’t want prospective clients or even employers to see your old projects that don’t truly reflect how good you’ve become.

You can either revamp old project descriptions to call out the skills and expertise that are currently more in demand, or to delete them all together.

Maintain a Digital Portfolio

We are now in a digital world. Attaching digital samples or links to your portfolio content wherever required.

This allows your employers to examine individual works in greater detail if they are interested.

You must make sure that your website is always active and functional across all web browsers.

Nowadays, many people access the internet via smartphones, tablets, and laptops. Thus, your portfolio website must look just as good on a smartphone as it will on a laptop.

Conclusion

It is important to know that when writing a portfolio, quality is paramount to quantity.

Personal Information, Values, Personal Goals and History, Accomplishments and Job History, Skills and Attributes, Education and Training, Testimonials and Recommendations are important in writing a portfolio.

We should also note that your work samples, marketable skills, resume and biography are also important. Good luck with writing your portfolio!